TULASI Mounica Ponugoti Department of Pharmacology, Hindu College of Pharmacy, Guntur - 522002, Andhra Pradesh, India
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IJRPC 2017, 7(4), 407-424 Mounica Ponugoti ISSN: 22312781 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN PHARMACY AND CHEMISTRY Available online at www.ijrpc.com Review Article A PHARMACOLOGICAL AND TOXICOLOGICAL REVIEW OF MATCHLESS HERB: TULASI Mounica Ponugoti Department of Pharmacology, Hindu College of Pharmacy, Guntur - 522002, Andhra Pradesh, India. ABSTRACT Nature has many useful herbs and plants for human beings. A majority of world’s population in developing countries still relies on herbal medicines to meet its health needs. Among the plants known for medicinal value, the plants of genus Ocimum belonging to family Lamiaceae are very important for their therapeutic potentials. Ocimum sanctum Linn. (Tulasi), a sacred and traditional medicinal plant of India which possesses innumerable health benefits and therefore regarded as the “Elixir of Life”, ‘Incomparable one’ ‘Machless one’ and ‘Queen of Herbs’. Many research and studies suggest that Tulasi may be a COX-2 inhibitor, like many modern painkillers, due to its significant amount of eugenol. Bioactive compounds of Tulasi responsible for its various medicinal properties and their effects at the molecular level need to be investigated in more detail for pharmaceutical therapeutic applications. The present review summarizes the comprehensive information concerning pharmacological activities such as analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antipyretic, antiulcer, antiarthritic, antiasthamatic, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antihelmintic, antiplasmodic, larvicidal, antioxidant, antistress, anticancer, anticataleptic, anticataract, wound healing, anticoagulant,antioxidant, antidepressant, anticonvulsant, antidiabetic, antifertility, antihyperlipidemic, cardioprotective, antihypertensive, antitussive, antiemetic, genoprotective, hepatoprotective, diuretic, Immunomodulatory, neuroprotective, radioprotective activites along with toxicological studies. Keywords: Tulasi, Ocimum sanctum, Lamiaceae, Pharmacological activities, Toxicological studies. INTRODUCTION medicine appeared in Rigveda which has been Medicinal plants are the richest bio-resource of written 3500 - 1600 B.C3. drugs for traditional systems of medicine, Properties of plants as a source of medicine modern medicines, nutraceuticals, food were studied in detailed in Ayurveda, a system supplements, folk medicines, pharamaceutical of traditional Hindu medicine which is native to intermediates and chemical entities for India and is renowned as one of the major synthetic drugs1. Medicinal plants have a very systems of alternative and complementary rich sources of secondary metabolites and oils medicine. According to Hindu mythology, which are of therapeutics importance. Some of Dhanvantari, the physician of the God‟s, is the most important bioactive phytochemical attributed with the origin of ayurvedic constituents in plants are alkaloids, flavonoids, medicine. Ayurveda traces its origin to the phenolics, essential oils, tannins and Vedas particularly Atharvaveda and it stresses saponins. The important advantages of the use of indigenous plant based medicines medicinal plants in various treatments are: for the treatment of diseases4. their safety besides being less expensive, Tulsi “Queen of herbs” is described as sacred efficacy and availability through out the world2. and medicinal plant in ancient literature. It is Use of plants as a source of medicinal value is an important symbol of the Hindu religious a very old concept. In India use of plants as a tradition. The name Tulsi is derived from „Sanskrit‟, which means “matchless one”5. Its 407 IJRPC 2017, 7(4), 407-424 Mounica Ponugoti ISSN: 22312781 other name, Vishnupriya means the one that similar. Both the varieties also have common pleases Lord Vishnu. This plant belongs to the medicinal properties7. family Labiatae, characterized by square stem There are many species of Ocimum, which and specific aroma. Botanical name of Tulsi is have their different morphological or Ocimum sanctum (Linn). In India, the plant is anatomical characters. They are found in grown throughout the country from Andaman different places and have different living and Nicobar islands to the Himalayas up to conditions; so that they have different 1800 meters above the sea level6. It is also medicinal value. Content of abundantly found in Malaysia, Australia, West secondarymetabolites also differs species to Africa and some of the Arab countries. species. Different species of Ocimum are Ocimum sanctum (Linn) is the most prominent Ocimum americanum, Ocimum species of the genera. The leaves of the plant basilicum,Ocimum campechianum, Ocimum are considered to be very holy and often form centraliafricanum, Ocimumgratissimum, a consistent part of the Hindu spiritual rituals Ocimum kilimandscharicum, Ocimum (Tirtha or Prasada). Ocimum sanctum has two minimum,Ocimum viride, Ocimum suave, varieties i.e. black (Krishna Tulsi) and green Ocimum ovatum, Ocimumselloi, Ocimum (Rama Tulsi), their chemical constituents are tenuiflorum and Ocimum citriodorum (O.americanum × O. basilicum)8. Fig. 1: Plant of Ocimum sanctum (Tulsi) TAXONOMY Kingdom : Plantae Subkingdom : Tracheobionta Superdivision : Spermatophyta Division : Magnoliophyta Class : Magnoliopsida Subclass : Asteridae Order : Lamiales Family : Lamiaceae Genus : Ocimum Species : O. sanctum 408 IJRPC 2017, 7(4), 407-424 Mounica Ponugoti ISSN: 22312781 Morphology color, present in small compact clusters on It is an erect, much branched, fragrant and cylindrical spikes. Stalk less heart-shaped erected plant attaining a height of about 30-60 bracts are there at the base of each flower cm when mature. Its aromatic leaves are cluster. Sepal cup is not hairy within. Flowers simple, opposite, elliptic, oblong, obtuse or are rarely longer than 5 mm, calyx tube acute with entire or sub serrate or dentate bearded outside near base. Flower tube is margins, growing up to 5 cm long. The Tulsi hairy. The fruits are small and the seeds flowers are small having purple to reddish yellow to reddish in colour9. Table 1: Chemical constituents of O. sanctum Plant Parts Extracts Chemical constituents Aesculectin, Aesculin, Apgenin, Caffiec acid, Chlorgenic acid, Apigenin, Apigenin-o-glucuronide, Triacontanol ferulate, Vicenin-2, Circineol, Gallic acid, Leaves / Alcoholic extract Galuteolin, Isorientin, Isovitexin, Isovitexin, Circineol, Luteolin, Molludistin, areal parts10-13 Orientin, Procatechuic acid, Stigmasterol, Urosolic acid, Vallinin, Viceni, Vitexin, Vllinin acid Vitamin and mineral Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Calcium, Phosphours, Chromium, Copper, Whole plant 14,11,12 contents Carotene, Zink, Iron, Nickel Aromadendrene oxide, Benzaldehyde, Borneol, Bornyl acetate, Camphor, Caryophyllene oxide, cis-α-Terpineol, Veridifloro, Cubenol, Cardinene, D- Limonene, Eicosane, Eucalyptol, Eugenol, Methyl Eugenol, Farnesene, Leaves 11-17 Farnesol, Furaldehyde, Germacrene, Heptanol, Humulene, Limonene, n- Essential oil butylbenzoate, Ocimene, Oleic acid, Sabinene, Selinene, α-Camphene, α- Myrcene, α-Pinene, β-Pinene, α-Thujene, β-Guaiene, β-Gurjunene, Methyl Chavicol, Linalool, Cirsilineol, Circimaritin phytol, Isothymusin, Apigenin, Rosameric acid, Octane, Nonane, Benzene, Iedol, Cadinene, Borneol 11,12,18,19 Linoleic acid, Linolenic acid, Oleic acid, Palmitric acid, Stearic acid, Sitosterol, Seeds Fixed oil Dilinoleno-linolins, Linodilinolin, Hexoureic acid Whole plant 20 Secondary Alkanoids, Steroids, Tannins, Phenol compounds, Flavonoids, Resins, Fatty metabolites acids, Gums Pharmacological activity inhibition of 500 mg/kg of the tulsi paste was Analgesic Activity found to be 88.15% as that of the response Fresh leaves of tulasi were investigated for observed with 100 mg/kg of indomethacin and analgesic activity using rat tail method. Tulsi showed considerable anti-inflammatory showed an increase of 20.34 per cent with activity23. mild dose, 43.80 percent with moderate dose Anti-inflammatory activity of essential oil and of 51.47 percent with maximum dose at extract of Ocimum sanctum L. leaf (Eugenol) 90 min. after injection. The regression line was studied in wistar rats by using indicated that the analgesic effect remain upto carrageenan induced hind paw edema 3 hours irrespective of dose concentration. method. The extract was administred 100 Analysis of variance revealed that the mg/kg body weight per i.p and the standard analgesic activity of Tulsi was statistically paracetamol was also administered 5 mg/kg significant with all the three doses [p body weight per i.p. The extracted Eugenol 21. and paracetamol exhibited significant (p< The analgesic activity of fixed oil from the 0.05%) activity when compare with seeds of Ocimum sanctum (OS) were carrageenan control24. investigated in mice and rats using the tail Different extracts of stem, leaf and stem calli flick, tail clip, tail immersion and acetic acid- of OS were tested for antiinflammatory activity induced writhing methods. It was found it be using carrageenaninduced rat paw oedema effective against acetic acid induced writhing model in comparison with the standard in dose dependent manner, suggesting that indomethacin. The ethanol extract of callus writhing inhibiting activity of the oil is tissue exhibited maximum significant anti- peripherally mediated due to combined inflammatory activity out of all extracts studied inhibitory effects of prostaglandins, histamine followed by ethanol extracts of leaves of OS25. and acetylcholine22. Ocimum sanctum fixed oil and linolenic acid were found to possess significant